Day and Taxi: Out (2006)

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The Swiss Day and Taxi trio was formed in 1988 as a quartet, eventually transforming into the group presently led by and composed for by saxophonist Christoph Gallio. The group is rounded out by bassist Christian Weber and drummer Michael Griener.

At times, this musical offering could be considered a collection of expressionist or serial works, appearing to mimic the style of Arnold Schoenberg's Viennese School, a style that had its glory days at the turn of the 20th Century in Europe. Most of the tracks are very short, a technique that mirrors the goals of the expressionist school of thought: to find a way to express emotions through the most dramatic of contrasts, using the shortest span of time, to heighten or intensify the emotional impact.

Gallio also uses the expressionist vocal technique of Sprechstimme, or spoken song, on "New Music and "Curtains Dream. Guest vocalist Sara Maurer's style brings an eerie, uneasy tonal quality to both selections.

Some tracks have a minimalist quality, like "Go and "Run, which remains hopelessly undeveloped. Out offers a few moments that spotlight Weber's bass playing, but most of the the selections generally appear to be completely composed, without much improvisation, consisting primarily of saxophone melodies with little or no real support from the bass and drums and making almost no use of the jazz process.